Looking for a job that’ll take you to new locations where you meet new people every day and make $20 an hour or more? With the start of a new decade, the U.S. Census Bureau is hiring.
According to a US Census recruiter, “We are hiring on Kauai, Oahu, Maui, and Big Island in 2020. Applying can only be done online. Simply go to our website, upload your resume, answer a few questions and wait for a call from a recruiter.”
“Right now, we are looking to fill hundreds, if not thousands of positions on all the islands, actually. They’re temporary positions,” said Samuel Resendez, a partnership specialist with the Census Bureau. “We’ve ramped up our recruiting for positions such as address canvassing, enumerators, address listers and Census takers. So right now we’re hiring for workers that will work through 2020 possibly up to September.”
According to the 2020census.gov website, those hired as Census takers will earn $20 an hour, plus reimbursement for work-related mileage and expenses, where applicable.
“You have to be a U.S. citizen, 18 or older,” said Resendez. “You have to pass a background check and fingerprint check. You also have to have a valid Social Security number. We need boots on the ground We’re looking for people that want to get out and do good for the community, bring funds to the community, who are active in engaging community leaders and know the importance and the value of what the Census means and how it helps. We’re looking for people willing to put in hard work and long hours. And they’re going to get rewarded for it.
“For many of the jobs, you will need a driver’s license and a vehicle unless public transportation is readily available. You’ll also need access to the internet and an email account to complete the training.”
All who are hired will receive training, and some will be required to travel to Honolulu to be trained, he said. And, as noted, some of the training can be done online, at home.
There is also a need for Census takers who are bi-lingual and multi-lingual due to the many languages spoken in Hawaii, Resendez said.
“The Census (form) will be printed in various languages,” he explained. “I can’t remember the number off the top of my head, but it’s going to be published in English, Spanish, Japanese, Tagalog, Marshallese, Chuukese and more. We are taking into account all of the languages that are spoken here in the islands.”
Many will receive Census forms in the mail and filling them in will eliminate the need for a Census taker to manually canvass that household.
The law requires Census forms to be filled in and returned, although some would prefer to not do so. Resendez said it’s vital the forms be filled out accurately and returned, regardless of how one feels about being questioned by the government.
“In any place, there may be a mistrust of the government. That’s why we focus on educating and informing,” he said. “Whether you trust the government or not, we all use services of the government, such as the roads, the hospitals, the schools, programs that feed the needy. As far as the Census goes, yes, we are a part of the government, but all we want is an accurate count and it’s important to get an accurate count so communities can get their fair share of government funding for services we all need.”
For more information about job opportunities with the U.S. Census, visit 2020census.gov/en/jobs.
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Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
